Gasification of organic material (biomass) or fossil fuel carbonaceous material (coal) into syngas is known. The gasification process converts these materials into a gaseous mixture including carbon monoxide, hydrogen, carbon dioxide and methane. This gaseous mixture is called syngas and is commonly used as a combustible fuel or in the manufacture of derivate products.
Biomass gasification is generally conducted at the surface using gasifiers that are specially designed for biomass gasification. Coal gasification of mined coal may also be conducted at the surface using gasifiers that are specially designed for coal gasification. Non-mined coal may also be gasified using a process called in-situ coal gasification (ISCG), also referred to underground coal gasification, where coal is gasified in non-mined seams to produce syngas and methane.